# Orchestral viola excerpts, the standard audition repertoire

The viola excerpts that appear on almost every audition list, annotated with what each one is actually testing.

Viola auditions ask a specific question: can you produce a sound that carries in the middle of the texture without turning either thin or heavy? The excerpt list is built around it, Don Juan for projection in a high register, the Mendelssohn Scherzo for control at speed, the Brahms for rhythm and weight.

The two solo excerpts, Don Quixote and the Mahler 10 Adagio, appear mainly at principal auditions and test characterisation rather than section blend. Everything else is about matching.

## Excerpts

- [Strauss: Don Juan, opening](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/strauss-don-juan-viola), The standard opening request at viola auditions. Fast, high, and written in a register where the viola has to project without turning thin. Audition; Late-Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night’s Dream, Scherzo](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/mendelssohn-midsummer-scherzo-viola), The viola benchmark for a light, fast, even stroke at a quiet dynamic. Appears on almost every audition list. Audition; Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Brahms: Haydn Variations, Variation VI](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/brahms-haydn-variations-viola), A standard Brahms viola excerpt testing rhythmic precision and a full sound in the middle register. Advanced; Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Strauss: Don Quixote, Sancho Panza solo](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/strauss-don-quixote-viola), The extended solo viola part representing Sancho Panza. Standard at principal viola auditions and a test of character playing. Audition; Late-Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, III, Trio fugato](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/beethoven-5-iii-viola), The low-string fugato of the Trio, which the violas take up after the cellos and basses. Tests clarity and off-string articulation. Advanced; Classical; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Berlioz: Roman Carnival Overture, viola melody](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/berlioz-roman-carnival-viola), The lyrical viola melody near the opening, one of the few moments in the repertoire where the section carries the tune outright. Advanced; Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5, I, opening](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/shostakovich-5-i-viola), The angular canonic opening. Exposed, rhythmically strict, and demanding a hard, deliberate sound rather than a warm one. Advanced; Modern; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Mozart: Haffner Symphony, IV, Presto](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/mozart-35-iv-viola), Fast classical passagework testing clarity, lightness, and rhythmic discipline at speed. Advanced; Classical; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Smetana: The Bartered Bride, Overture](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/smetana-bartered-bride-viola), Sustained fast fugal string writing at a tempo that leaves no margin. A stamina and clarity test. Audition; Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/ravel-daphnis-viola), Shimmering, divided, colouristic string writing that asks for control at very quiet dynamics and precise ensemble. Audition; Modern; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Prokofiev: Romeo & Juliet, Dance of the Knights](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/prokofiev-romeo-juliet-viola), Heavy, deliberate, rhythmically exact writing in the middle register. Approachable notes, unforgiving pulse. Intermediate; Modern; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.
- [Mahler: Symphony No. 10, Adagio, opening](https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola/mahler-10-adagio-viola), The unaccompanied viola line that opens the Adagio, the whole section alone, unsupported, at a very slow tempo. Audition; Late-Romantic; Alto clef. Standard audition excerpt.

Canonical source: https://arcosounds.com/repertoire/viola